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The franchise that outraged a generation of parents is back with the goriest, silliest, and most entertaining Mortal Kombat yet.

23 years ago the original Mortal Kombat began the modern era of video game controversy. Games had been the subject of moral panic long before that of course, including over the question of in-game violence, but Mortal Kombat’s realistic visuals (for the time) made it both public enemy number one and the desire of every under-age gamer in the West. And yet for all its gory ultra violence Mortal Kombat is a strangely charming and funny experience, especially in this latest iteration.

There is a fine between over-the-top Itchy & Scratchy style violence and genuinely disturbing visuals, but by and large Mortal Kombat manages to walk that tightrope with barely a wobble. That’s always been its talent really, and the last game, the numberless reboot from 2011, did a good job of restating the franchise for the modern era. Even if it was a little short on vision or new ideas – a perennial problem for all one-on-one fighters.

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This new game is, of course, fundamentally the same as always, and although it borrows elements from many of its predecessors, as well as sister series Injustice, at the end of the day you’re still just punching your opponent until their health bar runs out. The action still only takes place along a 2D plane and many of the moves and characters are exactly the same as they were more than two decades ago.

You could say that about almost any fighting game though, from Street Fighter to Tekken, but what Mortal Kombat X alone is able to boast is a decent story mode. Not in the fact that it has a plausible plot or decent dialogue – of course it doesn’t – but that it actually feels like a worthwhile part of the game. The details aren’t worth going into here but it also helps to explain that the game is set some 25 years after the last one, and so many of the primary characters are actually offspring of the old school favourites.

They, and many others, all get a chapter each and so you get to see Cassie Cage (daughter of Johnny Cage and Sonya Blade), Jacqui Briggs (daughter of Jax), Kung Jin (cousin of Kung Lao), and Takahashi Takeda (son of Kenshi) fighting and having comic book style meldoramas. There’s also some nicely choreographed fight scenes and semi-optional QTE segments (you don’t have to win them but they give you unlocks if you do).

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There are also other brand new characters too, including insect-spitting bug lady D’Vorah, the Aztec-like Kotal Kahn, and Ferra/Torr who have obviously been inspired by Master Blaster from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.

All of them have their own fatalities, that range from pulling a loser’s guts out through their throat to cleaving people in half or punching them in the groin so hard their head falls off. And yet somehow it’s all done with such childish enthusiasm that your first instinct is always to laugh rather than gag. Brutalities also make their way back into the game, where you get to pummel a beaten opponent with an elongated combo, and the newer X-ray strikes, where you’re afforded a view of an enemy’s innards, also return.

In terms of the standard combat the game brings back the idea (from as far back as Mortal Kombat 5) of everyone having three different disciplines, that you can choose between before you start a fight. So, for example, Scorpion can focus on using ranged fireballs, dual swords, or a little demonic helper. Many moves are still common between each discipline but others, including special moves, are unique. But in every case the combos remain very easy to pull off, and still pander to those that can never quite get the quarter rotating moves right in Street Fighter.

Beyond standard one-on-one fights and the story mode Mortal Kombat X has mountains of other modes to keep you interested. There’s a baffling array of Tower knockout modes, including Klassic Towers, Challenge Towers, and the Test Your Might Tower. The new Test Your Luck Tower is particularly interesting though, as it randomises a wide range of match modifiers from the speed you fight at to the damage the enemy does.

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How well the game’s online modes work after launch remains to be seen, but there are some interesting ideas already in play. Living Towers will update regularly to offer daily and even hourly challenges. There’s also what seems to be some sort of online meta game, where you’re told to choose a faction at the start of the game and then earn points to try and beat the other side.

On top of this almost everything you do, in any of these modes, earns koins [sic] which you can then spend in the Krypt to unlock new costumes, artwork, fatalities, and other things you’ll be surprised to find aren’t DLC. As with most of these features the Krypt isn’t a new idea in principle but it’s now been transformed into a first person, grid-based dungeon crawler that reminds us of our beloved Etrian Odyssey (or Dungeon Master if you prefer).

Oddly though, considering how accessibility is one of the game’s main draws, the tutorials are rather basic and in particular there’s very little explanation for the different disciplines. We assume this is the game trying to imply the nuances of each are only for advanced players, but it seems an odd omission in what is otherwise the perfect starting game for a fighting game novice.

The graphics are also mildly disappointing, and as the game borrows the interactive backgrounds from Injustice there’s still a whiff of the last gen about the underlying tech. The facial animation remains poor, and the character models in general have a weird idea about body proportions; particularly necks for some reason.

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Surprisingly generous is not a phrase that gets used much nowadays but in terms of the number of characters, modes, and unlockables Mortal Kombat X exceeds expectations. And more importantly it’s a really fun, and amusingly grotesque, fighting game. It’s still not the deepest fighter around but that’s not what’s its aiming for. Instead, there are several things it does better than its rivals and even just being identifiably different is no mean achievement for such a crowded genre.

After all, it’s not as if there are any other games where you get to punch your opponent’s jaw off and then take a selfie of it, before posting the photo on an in-game social network. Perhaps that’s just as well, but Mortal Kombat X is not just bloody silly it’s also bloody good fun.

Mortal Kombat X

In Short: The best new Mortal Kombat for years, with a fighting game experience that’s as generous with the content as it is with the gore.

Pros: The OTT violence is gloriously varied and just tongue-in-cheek enough not to offend. Varied characters and disciplines, with plenty of game modes. Story mode and Krypt are especially good.

Cons: The combat is still simplistic by fighting game standards and there are still almost no genuinely new ideas. Some ugly character art and a lack of explanation for different disciplines.